Eight
"This is my family-" Sarah "Eight" '''Mills (born '''Sarah Mills) is one of the main protagonists of The Thing novel. Eight was kidnapped and raised in Hawkins National Laboratory from her mother during birth, where she was experimented on for her inherited psychokinetic abilities. After escaping the lab, she was found by Matt, Mike, Ben and Tommy. Upon discovering her abilities, Matt believed that she could help find Billy, their missing friend. During their time together, she and Mike formed a strong bond and quickly grew to like each other. She also helped Matt unlock his own psychokinetic abilities which laid dormant inside him, this also strengthened their bond further as they found they could speak and connect telepathically. It was ultimately revealed that, in a lab experiment, she made contact with a creature from another dimension, accidentally opening an inter-dimensional gateway. In an attempt to protect her friends, Eight eventually faced and destroyed this monster in a showdown at Halwick Middle School, mysteriously vanishing in the process. Eventually, Eight was found by Matt in a catatonic state and he kissed her, and his love for her broke her out off his catatonic state. Eight cried as she reunited Matt and they embraced and Matt explained everything that happened and showed her how his abilities had grown since she'd been gone. Eight quickly became jealous of the party's newest member Riley as she thought Riley was way prettier than her and thought that she had affection for Matt. She ignored her, but Matt ended the feud by telling Eight in front of the rest of the Party that Riley was just his friends. They needed to be together if they were going to defeat the evil that was following them around. The Loser's Party banded together and managed to brutally beat The Thing before forcing it through the portal to the Downside and Eight and Matt used their abilities to close the gate. Eight then went to the dance with Matt and they kissed for the third time. During the hot summer of 1985 a few months later, Matt's romantic relationship with Eight continues to blossom much to the annoyance of their friends and Eight's adopted father Officer Jones who tries to complicate it. However, Matt and Eight truly love each other so they ignore Officer Jones' advances who eventually gets over it. They learn that the 'Thing' is back and it has possessed their school bully, Mason Bowen and instructed him to hunt and kill the Loser party. Mason kidnaps Matt to use him as bait and take him to the mall, Mason and his army of possessed humans take on the Losers party eventually freeing an injured Matt who fights with Mason using his powers to defeat him. Mason is eventually killed when he falls off a high ledge falling into a burst of fire. However, the Thing wasn't vanquished and Mason used his dying breaths to re-open the portal. The Thing rises again bursting up out of the sewers a month later in a giant spider-like form and kidnaps the Loser's by possessing a police officer who knocks them all out and takes them to Feibolt House and presents them to Thing who kills the officer. Matt wakes up first and battles Thing as it takes the form off Eight who taunts him and begins punching him, but Matt is powerless to attack the girl he loves. He is saved by Eight who throws Thing into the wall, Thing then changes into one of the guards at Halwick Lab and attack Eight who conquers her fear and use her powers to snap the bones of the guard forcing the Thing back into Stitches the Clown. The Loser's band together in a physic battle and kill Thing by crushing its heart killing it forever. The Feibolt House crumbles into nothing and the sewers cave in and Matt uses his powers to save his friends and they escape the crumbling, flooding and stormy Halwick. History Eight/History Personality and Traits Raised in Halwick National Laboratory and completely deprived of socialization, Eight was timid, socially withdrawn and awkward and extremely cautious and wary of other people. However, she became fiercely protective and showed unyielding loyalty towards those who cared for her, especially to Matt whom she fell in love with, to the point of sacrificing herself to destroy the Monster when it threatened to harm her friends. Even after being separated for a year, Eight showed considerable determination in saving her friends by getting over her difficulties and traumas to help those she loved. If Eight attempted to defy Dr. Wilson's orders when under his control, she would be locked in a cramped room as punishment, potentially for hours on end. These painful experiences lead her to develop severe claustrophobia. She also showed some signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, frequently remembering her harrowing experiences at the lab following her escape. She also was trapped in tanks of water for hours leading to her developing Aquaphobia, and The Thing brought back these fears by drowning her in water and making sure she couldn't escape. Due to a very limited vocabulary, she could not effectively communicate her thoughts and emotions and had little to no understanding of simple concepts such as friendships or promises. These difficulties communicating often lead to misunderstandings with her friends. Episodes of intense stress and fear had the potential to trigger Eight's powers, releasing them in unpredictable and sometimes dangerous ways. She was reluctant to harm innocent life and had no malicious intent but was sometimes forced to maim or kill in extreme circumstances. She did not take this lightly as these instances were always followed by strong feelings of guilt and self-loathing (not to mention the physical toll these acts had on her body). Despite having killed before, she doesn't like killing and only does in self-defence or to help and save her friends. After nearly a year in Halwick with her friends by the time the summer had come, she could communicate more effectively but she still didn't understand certain social cues and is a bit wary of others. Eight is also very clingy and becomes attached quickly shown in Matt when she returned from her catatonic state she was attached that she cried whenever she was separated from him. She also became attached to the party and sacrificed herself to the monster Powers and Abilities Eight was born with a vast array of preternatural abilities, acquired through a combination of inheritance and exposure to hallucinogenic drugs while in utero during her mother's time as an MKUltra test subject. These abilities were the reason she was abducted at birth and raised at Halwick Lab, where she was experimented on. The effect of the subsequent direct experimentation on Eight and her powers is unclear. It is possible that her powers laid dormant and could only be unearthed through further experimentation. However, it is also possible that Eight had access to these powers at birth, but merely gained understanding and experience of them during her time in the laboratory. As her mother displays similar psychic powers, it is possible the experimentation on her mother during her pregnancy augmented her powers or she simply naturally developed stronger abilities. Her abilities also do take a physical toll on her and therefore she couldn't even do small tasks such as lifting books and crushing cans. Her abilities are somewhat linked to her emotional state, being at their strongest when influenced by her anger and fear. Being in distressing situations would occasionally cause Eight to unleash her powers involuntarily. This is how Eight opened the rift as her fear tore open a whole between the Downside and Earth. Using her powers takes a physical toll on her body. When using her powers to perform more menial tasks, Eight usually only suffers from nosebleeds. Based on how her powers are executed, it is likely the source of this blood is actually her brain. When accomplishing more daunting tasks, however, she would become physically exhausted, often to the point where she'd be unable to walk. Her most extreme acts caused bruising on her face, her eyes to become bloodshot, her ears to bleed, and occasionally even unconsciousness. However, if Eight was sufficiently satiated, this physical toll could be alleviated. Eventually, Eight's body had grown accustomed to the recurrent use of her powers, being able to go longer durations without succumbing to complete exhaustion. * Psychic Abilities Eight was born with Physic Abilities due to her mother's prolonged exposure to LSD, isolation tanks and a mix of other drugs as a result of her mother being an MKUltra test subject. These abilities were developed by Halwick Lab so that is why her powers are stronger than Matt's/ Eight's powers would occasionally affect the nearby electricity; when attempting psychic communication, nearby lights would sometimes flicker or even go out entirely. Eight's powers take a physical toll on her body causing her to have major nosebleeds if she overexerts himself, or if she has used her powers for a prolonged period of time. She also had major headaches after using her powers at first but after using them for a few years and practising them on smaller objects. * '''Telekinesis '''Eight is able to manipulate objects, people and creatures with her mind. When amplified by her emotions, her telekinesis is strong enough to lift large and heavy objects however Eight has difficulty controlling her power and it takes her more mental strain to use them. Eight could also use this ability to attack and cause physical damage to people (primarily in self-defence), even being able to affect internal organs to some extent. Additionally, she has thrown people against walls on several instances, broken the neck of a security guard at Hawkins Lab, and was even able to crush the brains of several agents at once. * '''Levitation '''Eight is able to lift others and himself and make them float in the air, she was able to lift the monster in the air and throw it into a wall, she was able to save Tommy when he was thrown off a ledge by Thing. She can also suspend people in the air shown when he was able to freeze Ben in place and stop him running into a room where The Thing was/